Lax 2008

Sorry if I missed it down below... but I was in Baltimore and I did not want to read the 100+ posts since Friday....

Any thoughts on next year? We are losing so many seniors (Matt M., Pittard, Mitchell etc). Yes, we have Max-a-million back, but do we have a chance to take Ivy again next year? What about another Final Four run?

I will be honest... I dont know much about our reserves and underclassmen. Would love to hear some thoughts. Lets hope we have a breakthrough recruiting year due to the last 2 years of terrific success.

It feels wrong to focus on 2008 so soon. I'm still soaking up the good vibes of 2007.

With all those seniors graduating, there will be some growing pains next year, no doubt. It's not easy to replace three super midfielders, the national goalie of the year, the national defenseman of the year, and the entire starting attack unit at the same time.

Although losing Belisle is tough, at least there are two talented and experienced players returning at defense (2008 juniors Moyer and Gradinger). We'll see if MacDonald, the 2007 freshmen who got the most playing time, gets moved to close defense or stays at long-stick middie.

In my opinion, goalie and attack are the biggest potential soft spots. McMonagle was a great stopper, but he was even better at the other little stuff, like initiating transition opportunities with quick, accurate outlet passes. I don't know that much about Myers, the transfer from Syracuse, but it wouldn't be fair to expect him be as complete a goalie as McMonagle was.

On attack, Cornell will open the 2008 season with an entirely new starting unit, with no proven finishers and no Pittard at the helm to control the pace and flow of the offense. That's scary. I expect big things from two players in that great junior class who haven't had an opportunity to shine yet: Finn and Pastirik. Finn looked super coming off the bench in 2007; he's a tough hombre who'll continue the recent tradition of hard-riding attackmen. Pastirik is small, but he can really shoot. It's insane to predict who'll win the long offseason fight for starting slots yet, but I like the idea of Finn, Pastirik, and 2008 sophomore Hurley. The latter, a lefty, really impressed me last offseason. He's assertive and explosive; whenever he touched the ball, good things seemed to happen. I suppose it's possible that Espey might move back to attack, his position in high school. Kyle Doctor seems to have some of the quarterback qualities of Pittard. And recruit David Lau is kicking butt this year for Cold Spring Harbor, even without injured All America (and Penn-bound) attackman Vecchio at his side. Lau might compete for time too.

The 2006 freshmen class, as anyone could have predicted, will become the heart of the 2008 team. Seibald, Moyer, Gradinger, and Romero all have a year or two as elite starters under their belts. Glynn has become their classmate because of his redshirt year in 2006. That's a great foundation for a minor rebuilding job. I don't think one should count on a return to the final four, and Princeton will be tough to beat for the Ivy crown with Hewit returning in goal (although the Tigers lose some great players too: Jungers, Sowanick, Trombino, etc.). But like Jeff Hopkins said, "In Tambroni We Trust." As long as Cornell is as hard-working and focused as recent Tambroni teams, the 2008 team has the potential to go far.

Thanks HH. Sounds like there is room to be optimistic.

Wow. Quoted in a Hillel Hoffmann lacrosse analysis. I'm honored.

To add to Hillel's comments, Pastirik came in on first EMO team a lot. He's had a good deal of experience in that area, which says to me our EMO will likely get better. All he really needs to do is expand to an even strength role.

My biggest concern next year is faceoffs. We need to get better at that, the Duke game notwithstanding. Either Schmicker needs to get better, or we need a new specialist.

Jeff Hopkins '82
Wow. Quoted in a Hillel Hoffmann lacrosse analysis. I'm honored.

To add to Hillel's comments, Pastirik came in on first EMO team a lot. He's had a good deal of experience in that area, which says to me our EMO will likely get better. All he really needs to do is expand to an even strength role.

My biggest concern next year is faceoffs. We need to get better at that, the Duke game notwithstanding. Either Schmicker needs to get better, or we need a new specialist.

An amputee learns to write with his other hand. We can work around a < 50% faceoff percentage. During the entire season, we lost only one faceoff that mattered.

billhoward

Jeff Hopkins '82
Wow. Quoted in a Hillel Hoffmann lacrosse analysis. I'm honored.

To add to Hillel's comments, Pastirik came in on first EMO team a lot. He's had a good deal of experience in that area, which says to me our EMO will likely get better. All he really needs to do is expand to an even strength role.

My biggest concern next year is faceoffs. We need to get better at that, the Duke game notwithstanding. Either Schmicker needs to get better, or we need a new specialist.

An amputee learns to write with his other hand. We can work around a < 50% faceoff percentage. During the entire season, we lost only one faceoff that mattered.

Very results oriented thinking. We went to OT against Albany because winning at the X gave them a lead we had to overcome. We fell way behind Duke because losing at the X gave them a lead we had to overcome. I didn't see any of the other games but since we only beat Duke and Syracuse by a single goal (and Brown by only 3!) during the regular season, I'm going to guess that faceoff problems played a part there as well.

Anyway, the problem wasn't that we lost the faceoff with 17 seconds left, it was that we didn't pressure Lamade after he picked up the ground ball just to burn time. Once Lamade got the pass to Greer, that ball was going in the net.

This'll teach me to do anything lax-related that requires thought in the lax post partum period. My '08 pre-pre-preview post above has a bunch of stupid mistakes and omissions:

> Cornell recruit David Lau's Penn-bound attackmate at Cold Spring Harbor isn't Vecchio, it's Corey Winkoff. CSHHS just won the Nassau Class C championship again. And that in turn reminded me that I once said Lau was a Suffolk County guy.

> I forgot to include 2008 soph Chris Ritchie in that paragraph about possible attack starters next year. He's in the mix for sure; his vision and feeding instincts might make him a nice EMO addition and a good complement to shooters like Pastirik or Hurley.

> I also forgot to mention recruit Mat Martinez (Bâbylon) in the goalie discussion. Although Myers' experience gives him the edge, Martinez is an exciting prospect.

> Midfield looks solid and deep again next year. Losing Clayton and Lewis hurts for sure, but with upperclassmen like Seibald, Glynn, Espey, and Romero returning and guys like the Corbolotti brothers and McCready waiting to compete for the two remaining slots on the first two lines, midfield will be a strength. Once again, most of Cornell's offense likely will be generated from up top, where the combined presence of Seibald and Glynn will cause defensive game planners to have a collective cow.

Jeff Hopkins '82
My biggest concern next year is faceoffs. We need to get better at that, the Duke game notwithstanding. Either Schmicker needs to get better, or we need a new specialist.

I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Josh '99
I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Agreed. But, you don't want your two best players taking the majority of the faceoffs. Players expend a ton of energy at the X and it often takes away from their offense. It's time for Schmicker or someone else to step up.

redhair34

Josh '99
I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Agreed. But, you don't want your two best players taking the majority of the faceoffs. Players expend a ton of energy at the X and it often takes away from their offense. It's time for Schmicker or someone else to step up.

I'm amazed I didn't notice this during the game, but apparently Glynn did nothing in the second half except take faceoffs. It's impressive that Peyser seems to both take faceoffs and play first midfield for Hopkins.

And didn't someone once say Austin Boykin was going to be a hotshot at the X?

If there ever was an illustration of how exhausting faceoffs are, it was watching John Glynn trying to get off the field after each fourth quarter faceoff in the semifinal. What a heroic, selfless effort.

Cornell's roster, like most college rosters, is loaded with guys who were great faceoff men in high school: Schmicker, Kirwan, Seibald, Glynn, Boykin. That doesn't always translate into success at the Division I level. Seibald may be the best of them -- not because he has super technique, but because he's so strong and smart and tough and instinctive that he finds a way to get the ground ball even after conceding the initial clamp or rake. (Shoot, he's probably the team's best short-stick defensive midfielder too.) But like redhair34 and others have said, it drains so much energy that it's not worth putting a superstar offensive player at the X except in emergencies -- sort of like the way the Redskins used to let All-Pro cornerback Darrell Green return punts only in the playoffs. Even the best faceoff men go through bad spells, often because of undisclosed injuries. It's a brutal task.

Another complicating factor is recent rule changes, which really crippled some great faceoff men who had cleaned up using the old methods.

On the whole, I though Schmicker really improved this year. One underrated aspect of his game is his ability to play short-stick defensive midfield once he has lost a faceoff. Many FOGOS are useless after the draw, win or lose, and dealing with a post-faceoff substitution can create a window of opportunity for opposing offenses.

One of Cornell's less heralded but intriguing recruits next year is Jon Thomson, a Canadian field and box player who's currently on the Orangeville Northmen roster in Ontario Junior A along with last year's OLA Jr. A rookie of the year Jesse Gamble, another Cornell recruit. Thomson faces off too. Although Canadian players are less well known for their faceoff game, there have been a few great ones lately, especially Denver's Snider.

(By the way, the Northmen are undefeated so far this year. Gamble has been putting up some nice numbers already.)

Al DeFlorio

redhair34

Josh '99
I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Agreed. But, you don't want your two best players taking the majority of the faceoffs. Players expend a ton of energy at the X and it often takes away from their offense. It's time for Schmicker or someone else to step up.

I'm amazed I didn't notice this during the game, but apparently Glynn did nothing in the second half except take faceoffs. It's impressive that Peyser seems to both take faceoffs and play first midfield for Hopkins.

I didn't notice that either. Peyser was something else - seemed like he must've come away with the ball (by a win or a false start by the other guy) like 70% of the time in the final.

Josh '99

Al DeFlorio

redhair34

Josh '99
I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Agreed. But, you don't want your two best players taking the majority of the faceoffs. Players expend a ton of energy at the X and it often takes away from their offense. It's time for Schmicker or someone else to step up.

I'm amazed I didn't notice this during the game, but apparently Glynn did nothing in the second half except take faceoffs. It's impressive that Peyser seems to both take faceoffs and play first midfield for Hopkins.

I didn't notice that either. Peyser was something else - seemed like he must've come away with the ball (by a win or a false start by the other guy) like 70% of the time in the final.

it definitely seemed like it... i think he won the first 7 or 8 faceoffs of the game, it was pretty ridiculous. he was officially 9 of 14 and JHU was 17 of 26

I'm not sure if it is still the case, but the NCAA changed the face-off rules for colleges three seasons ago (if I am remembering right), but high school rules were not changed at the same time.

Hot-shot high school face-off men have not been using the same rules as the college boys, so not only is there all that a freshman has to deal with playing against opponents 3, 4, or in the case of playing Duke next year, or 5 (or even 6 - yikes!) years older and more physically developed, they have had to re-learn how to face off. Not easy.

Here's what Inside Lacrosse thinks about 2008: [www.insidelacrosse.com]

mttgrmm

Josh '99

Al DeFlorio

redhair34

Josh '99
I'm not as concerned about that as about some other things. We saw both Seibald and Glynn have some success in that area in the NCAAs, and I have to imagine Schmicker will improve with experience.

Agreed. But, you don't want your two best players taking the majority of the faceoffs. Players expend a ton of energy at the X and it often takes away from their offense. It's time for Schmicker or someone else to step up.

I'm amazed I didn't notice this during the game, but apparently Glynn did nothing in the second half except take faceoffs. It's impressive that Peyser seems to both take faceoffs and play first midfield for Hopkins.

I didn't notice that either. Peyser was something else - seemed like he must've come away with the ball (by a win or a false start by the other guy) like 70% of the time in the final.

And they were legit, unlike against Delaware when he was inexplicably allowed to cheat for the entire first quarter. I thought it was ridiculous that the announcers spent so much time lamenting the 'bad day' that the Hens' elite FOGO was having without once mentioning that he was getting a very raw deal from the officials.
it definitely seemed like it... i think he won the first 7 or 8 faceoffs of the game, it was pretty ridiculous. he was officially 9 of 14 and JHU was 17 of 26

Wasn't Cornell also ranked 8th going into 2007, and Princeton ranked about 4th? At least Inside Lax gives credit to Tambroni getting the most from the players, and noting the impact Canadians have on the game despite being off the recruiting radar.

From Inside Lacrosse, the earliest 2008 rankings.


If Duke’s seniors return (with 2007 record in parenthesis):
1. Duke (17-3)
2. Johns Hopkins (13-4)
3. Virginia (12-4)
4. Georgetown (12-3)
5. Princeton (10-4)
6. North Carolina (10-6)
7. Maryland (10-6)
8. Cornell (15-1)
9. Syracuse (5-8)
10. Navy (11-4)


If Duke’s seniors do not return:
1. Johns Hopkins (13-4)
2. Virginia (12-4)
3. Georgetown (12-3)
4. Duke (17-3)
5. Princeton (10-4)
6. North Carolina (10-6)
7. Maryland (10-6)
8. Cornell (15-1)
9. Syracuse (5-8)
10. Navy (11-4)

The thumbnail on Cornell says:

>>> Cornell – The Big Red, after coming within inches of the national championship game in `07, suffer some heavy losses on the offensive side of the ball heading into next season, and graduated a national goalie of the year in Matt McMonagle. But with the tandem of Tewaaraton finalist Max Seibald and John Glynn returning at midfield, and coach Jeff Tambroni’s ability to get the most of the talent he has available, expect Cornell to vie for another Ivy League crown in `08.

The US HS A-As list is out and it looks like a down year for Cornell recruiting. Given Cornell recent success (especially last year's team) this seems surprising.

Assuming I didn't miss anyone, the league looks like this:

Princeton, 5
Harvard, 3
Yale, 3
Brown, 2
Dartmouth, 2
Penn, 2
Cornell, 1 (David Lau)

Other nearby schools:

Syracuse, 9
Albany, 5
Hobart, 5
Colgate, 2
LeMoyne, 2
Binghamton, 1
Cortland State, 1
Ithaca College, 1

[www.laxpower.com]

ithacat
The US HS A-As list is out and it looks like a down year for Cornell recruiting.

The US Lacrosse All-America list is deeply flawed because of bizarre regional inconsistencies and political bullshit (and Canadians aren't included, of course -- at least two are enrolling). Nevertheless, I think you're right. Even Cornell's most promising prospects among the 2008 freshmen have question marks.

Here's a reason to stay upbeat: There are quite a few All-Americas on that list who are already linked to Cornell for 2009.

Hillel Hoffmann
Here's a reason to stay upbeat: There are quite a few All-Americas on that list who are already linked to Cornell for 2009.

That's encouraging, indeed.
Lang?

ithacat

Hillel Hoffmann
Here's a reason to stay upbeat: There are quite a few All-Americas on that list who are already linked to Cornell for 2009.

That's encouraging, indeed.
Lang?

It's too early in the admissions process to discuss in detail, but there are a few names on that US Lacrosse All America list that have been publicly linked to Cornell for 2009 on various message boards. Midfielder Roy Lang of St. Ignatius (the same San Francisco prep school that produced the Corbolotti twins) is one of them. Another intriguing one is attackman J.J. Gilbane of Rhode Island -- of Providence's (and Brown's) famous Gilbane families -- a high-scoring two-time US Lacrosse All America who'll be going to Deerfield for a post-graduate year.

A very informed Canadian fan told me that Mitch McMichael from Whitby, Ontario and the Salisbury School is linked to Cornell, and that Carter Bender from Toronto is seriously interested and will PG at Brewster Academy. An attackman from Taft named Claghorn is also linked.

According to this list, one Ivy school is doing an outstanding job recruiting. Hint: It's not the one I was hoping it would be.

[www.insidelacrosse.com]

Edit: Here's a nice article about an Ithaca HS student named one of IL's top-25 juniors.

[www.ithacajournal.com]

I would not dismiss these lists, but I would not be overly concerned either. The high school talent is more widespread, and there are still many gems a little under the radar screen. Cornell has a reputation for finding "blue collar" players, who are still improving and who play together selflessly. Mitch Belisle, who just graduated, is a good example. I don't think he would have made a top 200 list as a senior in high school. He was converted from middie to defense at Cornell, and was named the top defenseman in the country. Cornell's recruiting classes are routinely branded the second, third or fourth best in the Ivy League by the so=called experts, yet they, not Princeton, have been the strongest team for several years now.

According to a posting on laxpower, Cornell will participate in a fall-ball tournament being hosted by Johns Hopkins at Boys Latin school on October 7.

Al DeFlorio
According to a posting on laxpower, Cornell will participate in a fall-ball tournament being hosted by Johns Hopkins at Boys Latin school on October 7.

Here's the schedule:

Sunday, October 7
Blue Jays Fall Classic
Boys’ Latin School
Baltimore, MD

10:00 AM
Johns Hopkins vs. Rutgers
Cornell vs. Ohio State

12:30 PM
Cornell vs. Penn State
Rutgers vs. Ohio State

3:30 PM
Johns Hopkins vs. Penn State

Al DeFlorio

Al DeFlorio
According to a posting on laxpower, Cornell will participate in a fall-ball tournament being hosted by Johns Hopkins at Boys Latin school on October 7.

Here's the schedule:

Sunday, October 7
Blue Jays Fall Classic
Boys’ Latin School
Baltimore, MD

10:00 AM
Johns Hopkins vs. Rutgers
Cornell vs. Ohio State

12:30 PM
Cornell vs. Penn State
Rutgers vs. Ohio State

3:30 PM
Johns Hopkins vs. Penn State

Two games back to back on the same day?

Josh '99

Al DeFlorio

Al DeFlorio
According to a posting on laxpower, Cornell will participate in a fall-ball tournament being hosted by Johns Hopkins at Boys Latin school on October 7.

Here's the schedule:

Sunday, October 7
Blue Jays Fall Classic
Boys’ Latin School
Baltimore, MD

10:00 AM
Johns Hopkins vs. Rutgers
Cornell vs. Ohio State

12:30 PM
Cornell vs. Penn State
Rutgers vs. Ohio State

3:30 PM
Johns Hopkins vs. Penn State

Two games back to back on the same day?

For everyone but Hopkins. I wonder how that happened...

Multiple games is typical of fall ball events. Two years ago CU played Hobart and Hofstra at Hofstra. Last year I think it was three abreviated games (LeMoyne, Hobart and Syracuse) at the Greaat Pumpkin Stick-Out in Syracuse. It's exhibition season and with 40+ players the coaches want as much game action as they can get and pack it in on those fall "tourney" days. The fall "season" is limited and travel resources are very limited, so multiple games on one day makes sense.

Gotcha. Thanks.

Is anyone planning on attending the games on Sunday and reporting back to us?

Wasn't there, but here are some impressions from Coach Tambroni (and some guy named Pietramala).

Inside Lacrosse

peterg
Wasn't there, but here are some impressions from Coach Tambroni (and some guy named Pietramala).

Inside Lacrosse

Thread discussing the scrimmages on laxpower: [network.laxpower.com]

Thanks for sharing the link. Are the white helmets only used in the fall?

ithacat
Are the white helmets only used in the fall?

Given on the "comments" below these photos, it looks like Cornell will be sporting new helmets and gloves for the upcoming season.

[www.lax.com]

Ithaca Journal today with many quotes from Tambroni: [theithacajournal.com]

I'm glad they're (reportedly) better for the players, because they're ugly. I like the Big Red in red lids -- exception being home hockey unis.

Some highlights of Cornell's fall ball games last weekend at this Inside Lacrosse video page: [tv.insidelacrosse.com]

Just go there and click on "Cornell Fall Ball" in the list of videos.

Wow. That was a highlight reel. Maybe Penn State isn't too good, or maybe they are... but the best IMHO was that the Red faceoff guy looked good.

TimV
Wow. That was a highlight reel. Maybe Penn State isn't too good, or maybe they are... but the best IMHO was that the Red faceoff guy looked good.

You can view the other side of the coin by watching the Penn State and Ohio State fall ball highlights.